What is a woman? – A summary from detransitioned voices

Biology, not identity
Across every account, the answer is the same: “a woman is an adult human female” – that is, an organism whose body developed along the pathway meant to produce ova.
“Organisms with the phenotype to produce ova gametes … are scientifically known as ‘female.’ In humans, an adult female is called ‘woman.’ That’s literally it.” – keycoinandcandle source [citation:0c85b32e-d7b3-41c3-b7ce-ddd73bedb433]

Potential over present function
Current fertility is irrelevant. The decisive point is the potential that was once present.
“The sex with the potential to create ovum … Keyword is potential. Whether they could in the past bc of menopause or had cancer that took their ovaries … there was a potential to create ovum. The end.” – BuggieFrankie source [citation:ebb638af-b15e-489a-9861-1f079a8d8a11]

Blueprint, not performance
Even when organs are missing or non-functional, the underlying developmental blueprint still marks the body as female.
“Female is someone that has a body that follows a developmental blueprint … the type of human whose reproductive function is to produce eggs and carry offspring.” – Aggravating-Scheme92 source [citation:b82eed40-8023-4e61-8479-a66137249b54]

Intersex and medical history
Rare intersex conditions or surgeries do not overturn the rule; they are exceptions that prove the category.
“It doesn’t matter if they have some developmental disorders … They are still biologically female and therefore either women or girls.” – SnooCompliments8762 source [citation:f045de4c-c9d3-41a2-a7b3-3dab90aede04]

Why this matters to detransitioners
They stress that defining womanhood by biology safeguards sex-based rights and keeps the focus on the shared material reality that shaped their own socialization and oppression.
“We are women because we were born female … To reduce womanhood to an identity that anyone can have delegitimizes the struggle … we have been through because of our biology.” – trashfasc source [citation:2d95cae5-71c5-4ae2-bcdf-b22a76850f92]

In short, detransitioned women and men offer a clear, compassionate, and consistent definition: a woman is an adult human whose body was built for the female reproductive role—regardless of whether that role is ever exercised.